Engine governor



Oct. 24,1950 v Filed Aug. 6, 1945 R. H. CHRISTIAN ENGINE GOVERNOR FIG.1.

2 Sheets-Sheet l 'FIG, 2

r -y- 443 as J7 J0 S INVENTOR RAY H. CHRIST/AN Wh g 2% v Ot. 24, 1950 R.H. CHRISTIAN ENGINE GOVERNOR Filed Aug. 6, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 43 85FIG. 7 as r 75 as as 74 100 18 88 a a l/ AI I I II X \fi L 89 57 a2 72a4 a7 .92 36 .95 37 101 as 1 2 103 104 ,TuT

FIG. 10

V h a t 4 4 8.9 87 INVENTOR 48 79' a4 96 352710139 RAY H. CHRIST/AN;

ATTQRNEY Patented Oct. 24, 19 50 ENGVINEKGOVERNOR :RayH; Christian,Wauwatosa; Wis.; assignor to MilwaukeeLock :&; Mfg. 06.; Milwaukee,Wis.,

a corporation-10f: Wisconsin Application August 6, 1945, Serial N0..609,17.5

The present invention relates to engine gov-' ernors, and moreparticularly to speedf-limiting' governors of the": throttling type for'j use with* internal combustion-engines.

Anobject of the invention-isto provide-an improved form of throttlinggovernor *which is directly responsive to engine speed, and-which issimple and durable. in constructionandreliable inoperation. V

Another object is to provide 'a governor'of this type which ,iscontrolled-"bothby the 'speed' of' the engine and'by thespeed of avehicle driven by the engine.

Still another object is 'to provide ian' engine governor having an.improved andsimpli'fied form" of fluid'pressure control;

. A further object is to provi'de an engine go'v ernor. which ifrendered ineffective will permitthe engine to'operate onlyat areducedspeed:

A still further object. is to provide a governor having a,pressure=actuatedjvalv the :movement of which? is pposed'by a reactionmeans of such character as to. permit.'movement ofthe; valve from closedposition to full'fopen'gposition"by? relatively light pressure but to:require a sub-- stantially increased pressure'to movethe valve? fromfull opempositiorrto a-closed position as the engine speed increases.

Anadditional feature of the present invention' is the provisionof "agovernor -valvewhich *isrotatable from a closed position-througha fullopen position to an opposed closed position.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a governor whichcan-readily be applied-tocon ventional types of engines.

Theinvention-further consistswin the several features I hereinafterdescribed" and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating certain embodiments of theinvention;

Fig. 1 is a side elevationalview of an automobile engine provided withspeed governing meansof the invention;

Fig.2 is a a longitudinal sectional elevation of a" fluid pressuregenerator-or pump forthe speed governing means;

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevationoftli'epump taken generally on thelined-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig.4 is a-fragme-ntar-y top view =of-the pump;

Fig; 5 is a longitudinal sectionalvievw of -'a centrifugal switchresponsivetovehicle' speed;

Fig 6 is]. a: sectional elevational view through the. engine carbureterand manifold connection; .Fig. '7'.is. a sectional elevational Viewthrough ant. actuating meanslafor a governor valve, the parts'beingshown in their position when-the engine isLat rest;

12 Claims. (Cl. 180-82.1

Fig. 8 is a view" generally similar to Figf'l, but

showing the parts in their: position when. the engine is. operating atits maximum governed:

speed; 7

' Fig.; 9is .a sectional view taken generally, along the line 99 0fFig."7, and

Fig- 1011s a 'view similar to Fig. '7, but showing:

a modified form of governing mechanism;

' In the drawingsylB designates a vehicle engine;

of. the internal combustion type having ,therusual clutch lfi'andtransmission. [1, the latter being connected to a driveshaft'lfl'for;transmitting,

power to the vehicle road wheels, or..oth'er propellinglelements notshown. The engine is of any conventional form and .is provided with anintake manifold I9 having an intake riser 20 connected to a downdraftcarbureter 21, the car bureter having the usual manually operablethrottle valve 22 'mountedon a shaft 231", The

shaft 23 is controlled.throughadever arm 24 from a foot :accelerator or:similar actuating means, not shown; which normally controls the flowof. the fuel charge into theintake manifold: The engine is provided withthe usual cooling fan 2.5 *which hasapu1ley-26 driven bymeans of a belt2.! extending around :a pulley 28 onthe engine crankshaft 29.

A fluid pressure generator or pump; designated generally by the numeral30 and here shown to be of a centrifugal type, is driven by the engineand develops apressure Which'varies with engine speed, as hereinafterdescribed- The pump" 30 comprises a, reservoir-forming casing 3|. to'one end of which is secured a hubbed cover or end bell 32.having asubstantially horizontal axis.

An impeller shaft 33 is journalled in thecover on a pair ofball'bearings 34, an oil seal .35' being provided'at the outer bearing.The "shaft car.- ries a pulley 36"by which it is driven from thebelt-J21; and an'impeller 31, here shown to be of a two-lobed type; issecured to the'inner .end

of the shaft. The impeller rotates in a'circular chamber38*formed'between the 'cover'32 and a fiat end-wall 39 of the casing3|;this .wall having a central opening '40 to admit oil 4| or'othersuit-' able liquid from the casing "into the impeller chamber; and theradius of the chamber being.

slightly greater than the radius of the impeller. The casing 3|isprovided at its top; portion with a radial outlet 42 from the impellercham ber,'and is also-providedrat the reservoir portion with a suitablebreather 43 filled with metal Wool, the breather having a small top ventopening 44.

A-metal valve block or body45-is secured to the top wall of the casing,as by screws 46, and has a" vertical passage 41 therethrough registeringwith the pump outlet 42. The upper end of the passage 41 is connected bya tube or conduit 48 to a diaphragm housing or chamber indicatedgenerally at 49 in Figs. 1 and 7.

With the construction above described, the pump shaft 33 is driven at aspeed directly proportional to the speed of the engine, and consequentlythe pump will develop a pressure in the conduit 48 and diaphragm chamber49 which is a direct function of engine speed, that is, the.

higher the speed the greater the pressure. Under certain conditions,however, this relation is modified by means responsive to vehicle. speedand acting to limit the fluid pressure developed when the vehicle speedis below a predetermined value. For this purpose the valve block 45 isprovided with pressure-limiting by-pass valve means com- 4 is closed, asindicated at 82, and has an axial bore 83 to provide a slidable fit foran operating rod 84 extending therethrough and into the diaphragmchamber 49 which is secured at the same end of the tubular portion ofthe housing. The diaphragm chamber is formed by opposed dished members85 and;86, theformer being rigidly secured to the tubular housingportion 19 and the latter being connected to the conduit 48. A flexiblediaphragm member 8'! is clamped at its periphery between the dishedmembers 85 and 86,

prising a spring-pressed ball valve 50 and an electromagneticallycontrolled piston valve 5| both of which control a by-pass duct 52extending from the vertical passage 4'! to a drain opening 53 in the topWall of the reservoir casing 3|. The ball valve 50 is urged to closedposition by a coiled spring 54 confined by ascrew plug 55. The pistonvalve 5| is interposed between the passage 41 and the ball valve 50 andis slidable and the movable central portion of the diaportion 9| meshingwith the pinion 18 and in a horizontal bore 56 formed in the valveblock.

A coiled spring 5'! normally urges the piston valve to its closedposition against a stop plug 58, and an electromagnet 59 urges the valveto its open position, indicated in Fig. 3. The bore 56 is vented byducts 60 which also form drainage passages. Current is supplied to theelectromagnet from the vehicle batteryv 6| through conductors 62 and 83,the latter of which includes the ignition switch 54 of the vehicle and acentrifugal switch 65 of any suitable type. The latter switch isconveniently interposed in the drive 66 between the vehicle speedometer6! and the transmission I! and comprises a centrifugal actuator 68, Fig.5, and a pair of relatively movable.

contacts 69 and 10, the latter of which is displaced by' a lever 1|controlled by the actuator..

The centrifugal switch remains closed until the vehicle exceeds apredetermined speed, so that at all lower speeds the electromagnet 59 isenergized to hold the piston valve 5| open, permitting oil to flow pastthe ball valve when the pump pressure exceeds a predetermined value. Ifdesired, the conductor 63 may have a control switch 12 to preventoperation of the by-pass valve. The ignition switch 64 prevents flow ofcurrent through the electromagnet when the engine is at rest.

Interposed between the outlet of the carbureter 2| and the intake riser20 of the manifold I9 is a flanged housing 13 carrying a governor valve14 of the butterfly type, Figs. 6 to 9, mounted on an operating shaft15, this valve being disposed below the conventional throttle valve 22,as seen in Figs. 1 and 6. The governor valve is of the balanced type;that is, it extends equally on opposite sides of the shaft 15. Thehousing 13 is provided with bearing portions 16 and N, Fig. 9, in whichthe shaft 15 is journalled, the shaft projecting through the bearingportion 11 and being provided at its end with a gear or pinion 18 whichis keyed or otherwise secured to the shaft. The housing 13 is providedwith an elongated tubular portion 19 extending horizontally normal tothe shaft and having a lateral opening 80, Fig. 9, by means of which thepinion can be inserted on the projecting end of the shaft, this openingbeing closed by a plug or cover plate 8|. One end of the tubular housingportion I9 adapted to rotate the pinion when the rod is longitudinallyshifted. The pinion shaft 15. is'

provided near the pinion 18 with a reduced extension 92 on which isanchored an end of an} encircling coiled torsion spring 93, the otherend of the spring being suitably anchored to the housing as by a hollowscrew 94. he torsion spring, which exerts a relatively light pressure,serves to take up back-lash between the pinion and the rack rod.

The end portion of the rod 84 remote from the diaphragm has a reducedcoaxial shoulder-forming extension 95 about which is mounted a cuppedspring seat member 96 bearing against the shoulder and forming'a-support for one end of a light,

5 helically coiled spring 91 encircling the shaft.

The opposite end of the spring 91 is seated against an abutment memberor bushing 98 screw-threaded into the tubular housing portion 19 wherebythe spring normally tends to urge the rod 84 to the left, as viewed inFig. 7. The bushing 98 has a recessed face 99, best seen in Fig. 8, inwhich is adapted to seat the flanged end of a second bushing or pilot|00 slidable in the bushing 98 and having a central bore |0| receivingthe reduced cylindrical end 95 of the rod. The bore |0| is closed at theflanged end of the bushing to form a stop, but this end is provided witha vent opening I02 to permit free movement of the shaft extension 95.The flanged end of the bushing I00 has a seat receiving one end of asecond helically coiled spring I03, the opposite end of which is seatedin the recessed end of an adjustable closure plug I04 threaded into theend of the tubular housing portion 19. The spring I03, which isconsiderably stiffer than the spring 91, exerts a relatively heavypressure, and its compression is adjusted by the closure plug I04. Whenthe engine is at rest, the governor rod 84 is in the position shown inFig. '7, where it is held by the light coiled spring 91, and thegovernor valve 14 closes the passageway between the carbureter outletand intake riser 20. Preferably, the extent of valve closure is such asto permit the engine to run at idling speed.

As the engine is started and comes up to speed under the control of themanually operable throttle valve 22, the pressure in the impellerchamber 38 is transmitted through the passageway 41 and conduit 48 tothe outer face of the diaphragm 81, urging the diaphragm to the right,as viewed 5 in;rF.ig. 7;. and; movingrthe. abutting operating rod 84 tothe right against-the-pressure.of;.the:light spring .91., The amount.of. spring pressureex ertedl'bv-thespring' 91; is capable ofvariationandican; be adjusted as desired by threading the bushing. 98. inwardlyor outwardly in the tubular housing. The pressure developed bythepump atidling-speed Willlmove the-diaphragm to an approximately centralposition against the light; pressure exerted .by: the spring 91:,-causing; the: rack 9I to :rotate theypinion I8 ongthe=governorvalveshaft I5 into suchpositionqas to=mover1the valve intoits full openposition; in-thiscase an approximately vertical position. In.this.;psition;

of ther diaphragmthe end of the rodextension;

95-engages the flanged endzof the-slidable springat1 rest,-: or in.motion below a..-predeterminedq speed,:.the centrifugal switch 65 is:closed :andthe ele ctro emagnetically controlled r piston: valves: 5,!

is :open,pso that thepressure developed by thepump will not exceedapredetermined value because of'the openingxof the. .springepressed byepass valve. filkwthis pressure being such that the governor valve J4will notrbe'movedbeyondgits fully, open positions Under theseconditions, the engine-maybe .run; at any-.speedselected .bytheoperator, as. an: increase of: engine. 'speedlwill .not'

cause art restricting movement .of the. governor valve; Howevergif thevehicle. speed exceeds-a predetermined value causing the centrifugalswitch to open, the piston valve 5| will. close under the pressure ofits spring 5.1:, making the by-pass valve ineffectiveand producingan iinmediate increase in pump pressure.

acounterclockwise direction, turning the governor valve from its fullopen positionrtoward its opposite closedposition as seeniinli'ig.8,:and;

thus automatically restraining. the vehicle. speed so that the operatorcannot .eXceedthe-desired maximum. In: the full openposition of the.governor valve,v the. reduced end portionfifi of. the

operating rod engages the closed enrhof; the. Consequently, if. further;

slidable bushing Iil l increase in. engine speed is produced;.as. byopening-the :manually operable throttle valve -2-2,.:the 1 operatinglrodwill move the bushing against;- the pressure of the spring 103 andalsoxagainstthe pressure of the. spring 9?. Thus, an. increasing.

resistance to further movement from fulllopen valve position isprovided. This is desirable .in certain circumstances, as forinstan.ce,,inv operation in-low or intermediate gearwhere the enginespeed may be considerably higher than would beathe case it the.vehicleis moving atthesame speed in direct gear.

The spring I03 isappreciabIystiffer than the" spring 91 wherebyxmovementof: the governor valve'from .full open position ontowardits. op-

posite closed position is counteracted by a greatly increased.resistance .to movement: of 'the diaphragm. With'the two-stage reactionagainst: movement of the diaphragm, the. governor valvecan. be easilyand quickly moved to its full open position upon initial accelerationof' the-engine to idling speed, but the; valve will move "from its;fullqopen position .to. a restricting position only.

Thistcausesq. thediaphragm 8'! to be moved .furthentoi. the; rightagainst the action of the spring I03 and as" aresult, the rack rotatesthe pinion "further in- 6: under"v considerable pressure inexcess-orthat required-toinitially moveit. :The; position shown in; Fig.- 8corresponds to: a high fluid pressure-which of course. is;immediatelyocounteracted by the fact-that the-governor.

valve I5 moves into restricting position, cutting; offfthe fuel supplytothe engine, and thereby slowingrdowntheengineand decreasing the pres-.-sure inthe diaphragm chamber; valvequickly follows the decelerating ofthe en-.

gin due to the combined forces of the springs ill-and I03 untilthe-governor again reaches full openposition, at whichtime the slidablebushing:

I06 has moved against the'stationary bushing 98; rendering the springI03 inoperative insofar-- as further movement of the operating rod 84 1sconcerned. Normally, the governor valve I l will move toward but notquite reach the closed position shown inFig. 8; however, if the engineis. driven by the vehicle on a down grade, the 'gov-' ernor" valve mayreachthis closed position.

The position; of the screw-threaded. closure plug; I64 can be adjustedin any particularapplication tocontroli the pressure on the spring Sincethe engine may berun at-any selected speed. aslong. asthe vehicle speeddoes not exceed a;,predeterrnined value, considerable powerisrenderedavailable for-heavy pullingwhen the transmission is operated; in low orintermediate;

gear. In-some instances, however, the by-pass.v

valve 59 may be set to openxat a'pressure sufficiently high to cause thegovernor valve. tomove toward its closed position. With. such settingthe-engine speedwillbe limited, although higher than; when the-pistonvalve 5I is closed.

For some types of vehicles it is desirable to avoid high engine speedregardless of the vehicle speed. In such cases-itis only necessary torender the bv-pass valve EElQineITectiVe, as by opening the controllingcircuit at the switchfIZ; or by increasing the spring pressure onthe-by-pass valve50 to hold .this valve closed. As another expedient,the valve block d5 may beomitted; the. conduit '48 being then. connecteddirectly to the casing outlet t2 which is screw-threaded for. thispurpose. A suitable closure, not shown; is.

then provided forthe drain opening 53 in the.

and'then backward toward its closedpositionto limit the engine speed. Thactuating means includes a housing- ?3" generally similar to the.

housing E3 of Fig. '7 and having slidably mounted in the tubular portionI9 thereof a governor rod 84 which is under the control of a flexiblediaphragm and coiled springs, as in the device of Fig-.7. The operatingrod 84 is here shown to have. a riveted connection 89' with thediaphragm. Instead of a toothed rack, the rodhas a saddle-shaped cam I85on which, rides a roller I86. carried on an arm Iill secured to.thegovernor valve shaft 75, the rollerbeing held against thecam trackbya light leaf spring I98. When the: engineyis at rest, the. parts havethe position shown inyFigi 10, theroller being near the upper end of oneof the cam inclines. Whenx-theen:

The governor gine is started and accelerated to idling position, the rodmoves to the right, causing the cam roller I06 to reach the lowest pointof the cam track, the governor valve being then in its vertical fullopen position. Further movement of the rod to the right as the enginespeed increases causes the roller to ride up on the other incline of thecam track, thus turning the governor valve backwardly toward its closedposition. The operation of the governor of Fig. 10 is otherwise the sameas that of Fig. 7.

Each form of governor is reliable in operation and is of such characteras to discourage tampering by operators. If the pump drive should beplaced out of action, or if the fluid conduit 48 should be disconnected,then the engine can still be started but will not run faster than idlingspeed, or some slightly higher speed, as the governor valve 14 willremain in closed position. If the controlling circuit should be broken,the engine speed will be under the control of the pressure-actuatedmechanism at all times.

While the governor of the invention is particularly suitable for vehicleengines it can also be applied to engines for stationary service.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by etters Patent is:

l. A governor for an internal combustion engine, comprising a governorthrottle valve movable to open and closed position and being in closedposition when the engine is at rest, means responsive to initialincrease in engine speed for actuating said valve first from closedposition to open position upon attainment of a relatively low enginespeed and for actuating said valve toward closed position upon furtherincrease of engine speed, and resilient means for opposing the movementof said valve by said speed responsive means and for restoring saidvalve to closed position when the engine comes to rest, said resilientmeans exerting a relatively light opposing force during the initialmovement of said valve from closed position to open position andexerting a relatively heavy opposing force during the further movementof said valve toward a closed position.

2. A governor for an internal combustion engine, comprising a governorthrottle valve movable to open and closed position and being in closedposition when th engine is at rest, fluid pressure means responsive toinitial increase in engine speed for actuating said valve first fromclosed position to open position upon attainment of a relatively lowengine speed and for actuating said valve toward closed position uponfurther increase of engine speed, and resilient means for opposing themovement of said valve by said fluid pressure means and for restoringsaid valve to closed position when the engine comes to rest, saidresilient means exerting a relatively light opposing force during theinitial movement of said valve from closed position to open position andexerting a relatively heavy opposing force during the further movementof said valve toward a closed position.

3. A governor for an internal combustion engine, comprising meansresponsive to engine speed for developing a fluid pressure increasingwith engine speed, a governor valve for the engine movable to open andclosed position, fluid pressure actuated means for moving said valvefrom closed position to open position upon attainment of a predeterminedfluid pressure and for moving said valve from open position toward aclosed position upon an increase of fluid pressure, spring meansexerting a relatively light pressure and opposing the movement of saidvalve from its initial closed position to said open position, and asecond spring means exerting a relatively heavy pressur and opposing thefurther movement of said valve from open position 1 predetermined fluidpressure by said speed responsive means and for moving said valve fromopen position toward a closed position upon an increase of fluidpressure, and means controlled by vehicle speed for limiting the fluidpressure until the vehicle attains a predetermined speed.

5. A governor for a vehicle driven by an internal combustion engine,comprising a governor valve for the engine movable between open andclosed positions, means responsive to engine speed for developing afluid pressure increasing Withv engine speed, fluid pressure actuatedmeans connected to said pressure-developing means for moving said valvefirst from closed position to open position and then toward a closedposition, and means controlled by vehicle speed for limiting the fluidpressure developed until the vehicle reaches a predetermined speed, thefluid pressure when thus limited being suflicient to move the governorvalve to open position but being insuflicient to move the valve toclosed position.

6. A governor for an internal combustion engine, comprising a shiftablegovernor valve, a reciprocatory rod for shifting said valve, a spring,

biased at one end against said rod, an abutment member for the other endof the spring, a bushing slidable in said abutment member and having alost motion connection with said rod, a second spring biased againstsaid movable bushing, and means responsive to engine speed engaging theopposite end of said rod for moving it against the pressure of saidsprings.

7. A governor for an internal combustion engine having an intakepassage, comprising a rotatable valve in said passage movable fromclosed through fully open to closed position, means responsive to enginespeed for moving said rod in one direction, means providing apredetermined resistance to the movement of said valve from closedposition to fully open position, andan increased resistance to movementof said valve from fully open position toward opposite closed gressivelyoperable spring means. f

9. In combination, a governor valve having a rotatable shaft providedwith a pinion, a rack member meshing with said pinion, means responsiveto engine speed for moving said rack member in one direction, and springmeans normally urging said member i-im the opposite directionfsaidspring means omprising progressively actuated springs of diflerentresistances.

10. In combination, a governor valve having a rotatable shaft providedwith a pinion, a rack member meshing with said pinion, means responsiveto engine speed ion moving said rack member in one direction, andspringmeans normally. urging said member in the opposite direction, saidspring means comprising a light spring initially opposing movement ofsaid rack member by said speed responsive Tjneans and a heavy spring forassisting said light spring upon predetermined movement of "said rackmember in one direction. a 11. A governor for an internal combustionenginejo'omprising a governgrfvalve movable betweenl'open and closedpositions, a reciprocatory operating member, cam means carried by saidmember and operatively connected to said valve for causing movement ofsaid valve from closed position to open position and back toward closedposition when said operating member is moved in] one direction, meansresponsive to engine speed for actuating said reciprocatory member, andresilient means for opposing the movement .10 tween open and closedpositions and having a rotatable shaft, an arm on said shaft, areciprocatory operating member, a cam on said member operatively engagedwith said arm for causing movement of said valve from closed position toI reciprocating member, said resilient means exerting a relatively lightopposing force during of-{ said reciprocating member, said resilientmeans exerting a relatively light opposing force during the initialmovement of said valve from closed position to openposition and exertinga relatively heavy opposing force during the backward movement ofsaid'valve from open position toward closed position.

.. 12', A governor for an internal combustion en-'-:

gine, comprising a governor valve movable be the initial movement ofsaid valve from closed position to open position and exerting arelatively heavy opposing force during the backward 'movement of saidvalve from open position toward closed position.

RAY H. CHRISTIAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the .file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 126,039 Duff Apr. 23, 18721,350,447 Fynn Aug. 24, 1920 2,127,454 Wolfe et a1 Aug. 16, 19382,138,100 Howard Nov. 29, 1938 2,169,267 McCullough Aug. 15, 19392,269,382 Schmidt Jan, 6, 1942 2,361,206 Hoppe Oct. 24, 1944 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 403,476 Great Britain Dec. 28, 1933

